Sudan/South Sudan Catholic Bishops Conference (SSSCBC) has said they are disappointed at the Government of South Sudan’s lack of preparedness for the General Elections scheduled for December this year.
It will be the first elections conducted in the country since it obtained independence from Sudan in 2011.
In a June 29 pastoral message at the end of a two-day meeting in the capital Juba, the bishops said an election is not a one-off affair but a process, and blasted the government for failing to live up to the bidding of such an undertaking.
“Like all South Sudanese, we look forward with hope to the day when free and fair elections can be held in our country, but we are disappointed at the government’s lack of preparation. An election is not a single event, but a whole process spread over time,” the stated. “This involves many elements, including the establishment of an independent electoral commission, demarcation of constituencies, registration of voters, political parties and candidates, training electoral officers, civic education, the logistics of voting in our vast land which has poor infrastructure and communication, security and a peaceful environment conducive for voting.”
“Virtually none of this has taken place,” the bishops added.
They also complained that insecurity and floods in several parts of the country could limit people’s capacity to take part in the voting.
The disappointment is even greater because the December polls are supposed to be the last step in the implementation of the 2018 revitalized peace agreement which called for the drafting of a permanent constitution, security sector reform, transitional justice, reconciliation, and other elements.
“Most of these have not been fulfilled, so it is difficult to see how the final element can legitimately be implemented without implementing all others,” the bishops said.
However, Bishop Eduardo Hiiboro of Tambura-Yambio Diocese said that the Church is preparing to do what it can to assist with the forthcoming elections.
“We would like to inform the world and the country that we are more than ever prepared, especially now that the election is coming towards the end of this year,” he stated. “The Catholic Church is engaging in voter education, citizen awareness, and all that it would take for people for fair and free elections, avoiding violence.”
Highlighting the lack of commitment by some political actors to the peace process, the bishops said the ongoing Nairobi Peace Talks could offer a way out and urged the leaders to “take these negotiations seriously.”
“Whatever happens, they should remain in dialogue and refrain from words and actions which might contribute to violence,” the bishops said.
Father John Gbemboyo, the Social Communication Coordinator of the Sudan Catholic Bishops’ Conference, said the country has continued to rely on people of goodwill to boost the effort that was started by Sant’Egidio in Rome, to restore the country to peace.
The bishops recognized the fact that the peace agreement has reduced large-scale armed confrontation between various armed groups but asserted that it hasn’t resolved the underlying causes of violence, notable lack of constitutional government, corruption, nepotism, land disputes, and the failure of governance and the rule of law.
The prelates said they believed it was critical for the South Sudanese people to look beyond the peace agreement and elections, to move beyond power struggles between different parties and factions, and to begin a true national dialogue on “the South Sudan we want.”
That, they said, implies a dialogue “independent of political and military elites, and which listens to all voices, particularly faith communities, civil society, traditional chiefs, elders, women and youth.